4-year-old girl donates birthday cash to hurricane fund

Four-year-old Mandi Parchment, who donated money for her birthday party to the Seventh-day Adventist Church's Hurricane Matthew Relief Fund, hands her donation to Pastor Shion O'Connor, president of the Adventist Conference in the Cayman Islands, as her mother Abigail looks on.

Mandi Parchment celebrated her fourth birthday Wednesday by donating the money for a party to the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s Hurricane Matthew Relief Fund for Haiti, Cuba and the Bahamas.

“It was a hard decision for Mandi, but she realized that she could do so much more to help if she donated all of her birthday money.”

According to a press release from the church, Mandi, daughter of Abigail and Sean Parchment, heard about the fund on the radio and from her parents and wanted to help. As her birthday approached, her parents asked if wanted to donate the money earmarked for her party to the church’s fund instead.

“It was a hard decision for Mandi, but she realized that she could do so much more to help if she donated all of her birthday money,” Mrs. Parchment said in the release. Pastor Shion O’Connor received the donation on behalf of the church.

The Hurricane Matthew Relief Fund got a major boost on Saturday when collections in all Adventist churches were diverted to the fund. The fundraising continues throughout November, according to the release.

Anyone interested in donating may also visit the Conference Office on 209 Walkers Road. The release pointed out that funds can also be deposited at the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) account at the Royal Bank of Canada or at any Adventist Church on any Saturday.

The Hurricane Matthew Fund will be shared among the three countries that were heavily impacted by the storm early last month. The Adventist Development and Relief Agency offices in each territory will administer the funds.

The release stated that the Cayman Conference is also shipping clothing and personal care and other items for babies, children and adults to Haiti.